“If it could only be like this always – always summer, always alone, the fruit always ripe and Aloysius in a good temper…” ―Evelyn Waugh, Brideshead Revisited When one is retired from working as an employee, one would think that the seasons, including summer, would all blend together. I find that while my time is […]
A Solo Flight – Celebrating Milestones
It’s when ordinary people rise above the expectations and seize the opportunity that milestones truly are reached. – Mike Huckabee I enjoy being a pilot, aircraft and hanger owner, but these joys are accompanied by a fair amount of responsibility. Even as a private pilot, periodic flight reviews (BFR) and medicals come with the privilege. This […]
Dreamers – An Airport Story in Three Parts
“Walk with the dreamers, the believers, the courageous, the cheerful, the planners, the doers, the successful people with their heads in the clouds and their feet on the ground. Let their spirit ignite a fire within you to leave this world better than when you found it…” ― Wilferd Peterson “I turned left onto a half-mile […]
The Joyland Carousel – Exposing Hidden Connections
I have never been to the Joyland Amusement Park founded by the Ottoways in 1949. Although still active until 2004, I simply never had a reason to check it out. As a child, my amusement park exposure was limited to school playgrounds, county fairs and carnivals, but I loved the carousels. I also love seeing lost things […]
The Abstract – Maison Steinbuchel’s Personal History
We have the original abstract of our Kansas Historic Landmark home dating back to the land grant of 160 acres from the Osage Land Trust. In past BLOG posts, I have told how three individual lives, immigrants from France and Germany, converged in Wichita, Kansas. How through love, hope, taking risks and even tragedy ended up as […]
The Farm, House and Bridge – Peter Stackman’s Legacy
“Praise the bridge that carried you over” – George Colman “The simple hearth of the small farm is the true center of our universe” – Masanobu Fukuoka Peter Frederick Stackman was the first husband of Marie-Louise Hahn, the matriarch for which the Kansas Historic Landmark, Maison Steinbuchel is named. In a previous post I outlined his […]
Traditions – Why I Embrace Them
I intend to keep writing Christmas songs. There’s still a lot more about Christmas that can be captured and feel like old-time Christmas. A lot of the traditions haven’t been explained in song. Clint Black If you read my last two posts, you are aware that December at our house is one long celebration. On […]
Goals: Write Them Down And Gain A Powerful Advantage. It Works!
“It’s the possibility of having a dream come true that makes life interesting.” – Paulo Coelho Each year since the early 1980s I have set goals. I always had goals, lists, “to-dos” in my head, but written goals came later. When I first started, it was primarily in the context of my job/career. In fact, […]
A Visit to Mission Aviation Fellowship (MAF)
Many of the things that form our lives rest in the background. They crisscross our paths making significant deposits in quiet ways. On a recent trip to the northwest, we took time to visit the headquarters of Mission Aviation Fellowship (MAF) in Nampa, ID. We have been supporters of MAF for over 20 years, but my […]